The Appeal of Martin Luther King, Jr.

's
"I Have a Dream" Speech
By Christopher Hollis

Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech is one of the most
inspirational speeches that has ever been written. Using just words, Martin Luther
King, Jr., inspired a nation to finally understand "that all men are created equal."
With a repetitive tone, the sharing of his dream, and the use of persuasive
elements, Martin Luther King, Jr., makes people realize the importance of the
message he is trying to convey. His message is clear, "let freedom ring."

The theme of King's speech is laid out early, since the first three sentences
speak of freedom, even though the word is not mentioned until later. In sentence
three, King says that, "It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of
captivity," in which he refers to the event in sentence two where "a great
American," Abraham Lincoln, "in whose symbolic shadow we stand, signed the
Emancipation Proclamation," which gave freedom to all slaves. Even though the
black man was freed by the Emancipation Proclamation, persecution of the black
man was harsh in the 1960's. King makes the point "that all men are created
equal," as stated in the Constitution of the United States. He communicates the
idea that this equality for all men was so important to our founding fathers yet has
been long since forgotten or ignored by people of his generation and of others
before his.

Although King uses repetition of the words "I have a dream," in which he
uses "I," he more often uses the word "we," making the message quite clear that
he has a dream and that we, all American's, either have or should have his dream,
which is equality for all men. For the reader who reads this speech or to the listener
who hears this speech, it would seem as though King is talking directly to us. Using
words like "we" or "our," he keeps the attention of the audience, since they are not
just being read to, they are being referenced as a part of the speech by saying that
he and the audience together must do this, rather than saying that "you," the
audience, must do this. The context of the word "we" fits nicely in the speech,
whereas "you" would become too repetitive and perhaps make the audience more
annoyed than interested and persuaded, which is the intended purpose of the
speech.

The tone of King's speech is passionate, though the speech reads smoothly,
since the idea of a speech is to be spoken rather than written. Since the speech was
originally spoken rather than written, it follows a natural rhythm that the reader
gets caught up in. The point of making the speech read smoothly is to let the
reader feel the rhythm of the words, so that the reader can get swept up in the idea
that the writer or speaker is trying to project. King's creative references and use of
many kinds of adjectives make the speech sound much more interesting, while still
making it easy to understand and informative.

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 In this speech, King is also very persuasive in influencing the audience of his
ideas. Citing the Constitution which was created by our forefathers, King infers that
they meant for America to be a nation in which the black and white man are
created equal, since the Constitution states "that all men are created equal." With
the persuasive elements in his speech, the passionate tone, and the smoothness of
it, King is very successful in the communication of his ideas. Times have changed
since 1963, in part because of King's well communicated ideas.

Later in the speech, King speaks of many places that we know. We know of
the "snowcapped Rockies of Colorado" and of "Lookout Mountain of Tennessee."
King uses much repetition of a particular line from the song "My Country ‘Tis of
Thee," which is "let freedom ring." He says to "let freedom ring" from all these
places telling the reader that "we" need to fight for freedom right here in our own
nation, in a setting that we know, our own towns, cities, and in our own backyards.
While a war abroad might seem distant and unimportant to American's at home,
King presses the point that the war is here in America, not beyond our borders in
some distant land. He makes this point to make people understand that the issue of
civil rights directly affects Americans and must therefore not be avoided.

King makes his message clear in that although we should do most anything
to fight for equality, let us use words and non violent actions that lead to peace
rather than violence which would lead to yet more hatred between peoples. "In the
process of gaining our rightful place we must not feel guilty of wrongful deeds. Let
us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness
and hatred." King's emphasis on change through non violence was the reason
behind the success of the speech, which because of its persuasiveness, helped
along the Civil Rights Movement. The white man was often not afraid of change
itself, only the means through which it was brought about. King's peaceful non
hostile approach did not drive listeners then or readers now away, since the speech
does not attack any group or individual. The speech is seeking to unite a nation,
meaning that since many people would like a nation in peace rather than at war
within, this speech appealed to not only the black man, but the white man as well.

King mentions that all activities of white men should not "lead us to a
distrust of all white people," in which he speaks to the black men, "for many of our
white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize
that their destiny is tied up with our destiny," which refers to all American's
destinies being dependent on each other, "and their freedom is inextricably bound
to our freedom," since both sides would have less persecution and more freedoms if
there was peace. King says that "We cannot walk alone," meaning that this has to
not only be the black man's fight, but the white man's fight as well, for only then
will change occur. Even though certain white people had been so cruel to his race
throughout the one hundred years since the Emancipation Proclamation, he does
not call the white man a racist. King became such a prominent figure because
unlike some other civil rights leaders, his dream for freedom involved a path that
did not involve violence. King refers to the white people who also share his dream

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as being "our white brothers," and that both the white man and the black men
cannot walk alone since their destinies are bound together. He even addresses the
white men and black men in the crowd as "my friends" later in the speech. King
was persuasive because his speeches motivated not only black people, but
motivated white people. His speech did not criticize the white man, and therefore
the white man became open to King's dream, which eventually became not only the
black man's dream, but the white man's dream, and finally, collectively, the
American dream.

King's speech eventually united a nation. His speech is so acclaimed because

of the persuasive, passionate tone that appealed to so many because of the
speeches' peaceful resolve of uniting a nation through non violence. King's "I Have
a Dream" speech speaks directly to the reader. King uses words that tell the reader
that this is something that he cannot do alone, that the road to freedom is
something that "we" must all strive for together through peaceful means, since the
destiny of all men, black or white, depend on the struggle for freedom. King's
excellent use of these writing techniques is the reason why his speech is so
appealing to readers now, and forever.

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 Source

Quotes are quoted from Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream Speech," which
was delivered on August 28, 1963, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in
Washington D.C.

Copyright © 2002 Christopher Hollis

Distributed by Hollis Innovations, LLC
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